UNIT III – CONTEXT-BASED INSTRUCTION & MULTIMEDIA

1.    What are key similarities or striking differences between the theories/models in Unit III?  Do the theories/models in Unit III share any common foundations or principles?  As we age, our motivations for learning change.  As a young child, learning is fun – just look at various television commercials to see how every new toy or education gadget instills that sense of excitement back into a child to learn – just buy this and your child will learn!  As children age, that excitement usually wanes.  As they get even older, it’s all about getting into college or getting a good job.  As adults, our goals/motivations are different still.  Goal-Based Scenarios help bridge the enthusiasm gap if done correctly, but they have to be worthwhile, not the “2 cars are headed to Raleigh.  One car is 100 miles away traveling at 50 miles per hour while the other car is 130 miles away traveling at 65 miles per hour.  If they both leave at 10 a.m., what time do they each arrive at the same location in Raleigh” scenarios, but something that is applicable to their life, job, family, etc., like how to provide feedback during an annual evaluation or positive discipline or something like that.  Anchored instruction appears to be a bridge between situated, problem- and goal-based learning, but is geared more toward K-12 students.  Students take what they know and apply it to solve a problem.  This appears to be a good way to involved critical thinking early on to prepare students for later life challenges.  The STAR Legacy model is similar in that they also use a scenario along with information from a subject matter expert (SME) broken down into a five step process which includes a challenge, thoughts, perspectives and resources, assessment, and end with a wrap up.  According to the lecture and slides provided, “MOST Environments seem different from the others in that while being context-centered, they are designed to support at-risk learners and avoid “basics first” approaches which assume students must master subskills before building to higher-level thinking.”  While MOST is probably a great tool for many people, I would think, based on its most basic approach, that this model is used far less than the others since it is most used for at-risk learners.

 

2.    What are you initial reactions to these learning theories/models?  What are barriers to their use?  What benefits might be expected for those who overcome the barriers?  Applicable scenarios are a great way to learn.  I use scenarios in the classes I teach every week.  Initially it was not well received by the command, but students began to rave about how much it helped them and then the command made it a required part of the curriculum.  Putting anything into context to show how it is applicable to the student is a good thing as long as it is tangible, not abstract, and not a far-fetched scenario, but something to which they can relate.  Because Anchored Instruction is geared more toward K-12, if an older person has never been exposed to scenarios, there could very well be some pushback, at least initially.  Because I use scenarios, it was extremely easy for me to wrap my head around these three of the four models.  The MOST model, however, hurt my head.  Again, in the right context, I am sure this model is wonderful, but because I have no experience either learning from it or teaching it, it was just more difficult for me to grasp.  I think all four models in Section III are great, for the right person, but they just weren’t all great for me personally.  MOST would probably be wonderful for those with learning disabilities, second language issues, even people moving to another country and trying to “get the hang of things” in their new environment, but I think the others are more applicable to the main stream public.

 

3.    Would you attempt to use any of the theories/models with the students you are currently teaching or hope to teach in the future?  Why or why not?  Could elements of the theories/models be modified so that they would work with your current/future students?  As I mentioned, I use scenarios in every class I teach, and have for over 2 of the 2 ½ years I’ve been teaching.  Because I deal with a lot of “legalistic” government issues, it makes what I am trying to teach students much more recognizable.  As I become more familiar with the needs of each new monthly group, I can change the scenarios to better fit their needs based on their pre-course assessment scores and the feedback I receive from week to week.  Personally I think scenarios can be used by anybody teaching anything at any time.  In fact last year at the AAACE Conference in Indianapolis, I actually did a presentation on Scenario-Based Instruction in the Online Educational Environment which appeared to be well-received, so yes, I think scenarios can be modified for anybody on anything.

 

4.    Since we’re taking learning theories/models that were not necessarily created with the Web in mind and turning them into Web modules, what Web-based tools or resources could be leveraged to carry out these learning theories/models online?  Please spend some time identifying tools and resources for this last point, as this background research should help you complete your projects more efficiently.  Well, we use the Blackboard LMS and Defense Connect Online, an online collaboration tool by Adobe, for our asynchronous curriculum and synchronous webinars respectively.  I also use Camtasia and Flash videos.  Some other options might be MuveeMix, and maybe even Letterpop.